100 Greatest Red Sox >> #39 Frank Malzone

Frank Malzone, 3B, #11 (1955-1965)

1359 G, 1454 H, 131 HR, 716 RBI, .276 AVG, .317 OBP, .403 SLG

Frank Malzone served in the army in 1952 and 1953 so he broke into the big leagues a little bit late. After his time in the service he spent a few years in the minor leagues and didn’t get a fulltime job in the majors until 1957 when he was already 27 years old. His late start didn’t stop him from making an immediate impact in baseball by having his best season in his rookie year. In ’57 he hit .292 and established a career high with 103 RBI while coming in 2nd in the Rookie of the Year voting, 7th in the MVP voting, won his first of 3 consecutive Gold Gloves, and made his first of six All-Star teams. That year he also became the first major league player to lead the league at his position in putouts, assists, games played, double plays, and fielding percentage in the same year. He also led the league with 25 errors, but a player that has the range to get to a lot of balls is going to misplay a few of them.

For the next 7 years Malzone consistently produced for the Sox. His stellar defense remained an asset throughout his career although his range did decrease a little with age. His offense alone wouldn’t have been enough to make him a star, but he was no slouch with the bat either. He was never one for plate discipline as his career high .333 OBP shows, but only twice did he strike out more than 50 times in a year and he topped a .280 AVG five times. He hit 13-21 HR every year and topped 70 RBI 7 times. He was a very dependable guy to have in the line up every day.

Malzone left the team via free agency after the 1965 season after 11 years in the majors, all with Boston. He spent 1 year with the Angels hitting .206 in 82 games, mostly as a defensive replacement. He retired after the ’66 season at the age of 36.

His Red Sox career was good enough to place him 9th all-time on the team’s hit list and 10th all time for games played. He also ranks at least 17th on the club’s all-time list for doubles, homers, runs, and RBI. His career totals are a far cry from Cooperstown, even with his defensive prowess, but he was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1995. He still lives just outside of Boston and is still employed by the Red Sox as an advisor at the age of 77.

Player bio by Brian Martin

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #41 Vern Stephens

Vern Stephens, #5, SS (1948-1952)

660 G, 721 H, 449 R, 122 HR, 562 RBI, .283 Avg, .363 OBP, .492 SLG, All-Star (1948-1951)

Vern Stephens was a capable shortstop, but it was his bat that made him a star and almost a Hall of Famer. If it weren’t for the knee injuries that reduced him to a part time player by the time he was 31 and forced him out of baseball entirely by the age of 35 he’d have his plaque in Cooperstown. Some will argue that he belongs anyways, citing his superior numbers to Phil Rizutto and Lou Beadreau, two shortstops of Stephens’s era that made it into the Hall.

Stephens stormed through the minor leagues and broke into the majors with the St. Louis Browns (now the Baltimore Orioles), a perennial basement dweller and laughing stock of the league. With Stephens leading the team they won their only pennant in Browns history. He played with them for six years and managed to turn a laughingstock into a semi-respectable team.

After the 1947 season the Browns were strapped for cash and even with Stephens they had no hope of competing. They traded Jack Kramer (who went 18-5 in his first season with the Sox before fading into obscurity) and Stephens to Boston in exchange for six prospects, none of whom ever panned out, and $310,000, a big chunk of cash in those days. Stephens was thrilled to be going to Boston. He wanted the chance to win and loved how inviting the Green Monster was, so close to home plate.

Stephens made an immediate impact on the Red Sox hitting 29 HR and 137 RBI in 1948, his first season with the team. He combined with Ted Williams (25 HR, 127 RBI) and Bobby Doerr (27 HR and 111RBI) that year to become the most feared threesome in any line up in baseball. The next year Stephens was even better hitting .290 with 39 HR and 159 RBI. He helped the league’s MVP, Ted Williams, lead the team to a 96 wins and a 2nd place finish that year. 1949 was a peak year for the slugging shortstop, but he still had one more fantastic year in him when he hit .295 with 30 HR and 144 RBI in 1950. With Walt Dropo (34 HR and 144 RBI) added to the mix the Red Sox scored 1027 runs, the most in team history. Eight members of that lineup scored at least 80 runs, five of them scored at least 100. It was an unbelievable lineup, even better than the beloved squads of 2003 and 2004, and their shortstop, Vern Stephens was a huge part of that.

In 1951 Stephens was putting together another typical season hitting .300 and slugging .501, but then his knees started to slow him down. He played just 109 games that year and would never be a full time player again. After a 1952 season in which Stephens hit just 7 HR in 92 games, he was traded to the White Sox for 3 role players. He was released by the White Sox in his first year with the team.

Was he a Hall of Famer? It’s tough to say. And, as the old saying goes, if a guy is a borderline Hall of Famer, he’s not a Hall of Famer. But was he a better player than Phil Rizzuto and Lou Boudreau, two shortstops of his era already in the Hall? I’m comfortable with answering yes on that one. He gave the Red Sox 3 and a half amazing seasons. Despite his short time with the team he still is 20th all time on the team’s RBI list with 562 and 22nd on the list with 122 HR, just 2 fewer than Fred Lynn.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #43 Pete Runnels

Pete Runnels, 1B/2B, #3 (1958-1962)

732 G, 825 H, 407 R, 29 HR, 249 RBI, .320 Avg. .407 OBP, .427 SLG, All-Star (1959-1960, 1962)

When Jose selected Pete Runnels as one of the old-timey players he would profile, Jose just assumed that he was related to professional wrestler Virgil Runnels III, a.k.a. Goldust, and his father Vigil Runnels Jr., a.k.a. the American Dream Dusty Rhodes. Pete Runnels is not. Nuts.

However, all is not lost, as it turns out that Pete, like his fellow Runnels’ has a secret identity. His shocking true identity is James Edward Runnels. So going by Pete is kind of pathetic. Jose hates people who hide behind fake names. They’re kind of sketchy.

But as it turns out Jose is glad that he ended up with Runnels. You know why? Because Baseball Reference lists, as his eighth most comparable player… get ready… Jose Offerman! Ergo, this profile is the eighth most like writing a capsule pinup of Jose Offerman. It has to be, it’s sabermetrics.

That said, there are still a lot of differences between Runnels and Offerman. For instance, Runnels was a three time All-Star in 1959, 1960 and 1962, whereas Offerman was an All-Star, well, never. Runnels won two batting titles, and barely lost a third to Ted Williams, whereas Offerman won none and narrowly lost a race with Dante Bichette for biggest jackass on the team. And with on base percentages ranging from .396 to .416 in his years with the Red Sox, Runnels could have done a far better job replacing Mo Vaughn’s “on base capability” than Offerman ever did.

Of course, Offerman does have his advantages too. Even though Jose has never seen tape of Runnels, he’s pretty sure he didn’t make that over the shoulder play running into the outfield as well as Offerman… come on, no one made that play as well as Offerman.

I’m Jose Melendez, and those are my KEYS TO THE 100 GREATEST RED SOX.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #46 Bill Monbouquette

Bill Monbouquette, SP, #27 (1958-1965)

96 W - 91 L, 254 G, 72 CG, 16 SHO, 3.69 ERA, 969 K, All-Star (1960, '62, '63)

He was known to his friends and teammates as "Monbo." He grew up in Medford, Massachusetts, and turned down offers from the Tigers and Cubs to pitch for the Red Sox, his hometown team that he grew up rooting for.

But Bill Monbouquette joined the Red Sox at a very inopportune time, during a dark period in Red Sox history.

Bill Monbouquette was born in Medford on August 11, 1936. He signed with the Sox in 1955 as a free agent and for a $4,000 bonus. He was a righthander who was a finesse pitcher who relied on changing speeds and had pinpoint control. He was brought up by the Red Sox in 1958 and made his debut with them on July 18. He went 3-4 in 10 games with an ERA of 3.31 in just over 54 innings.

Monbouquette was brought up to the Sox at a time when the Red Sox were in a downward spiral, and one of the only reasons many fans came to Fenway in the late 1950s was to see Ted Williams, who was winding down his brilliant career. Monbouquette was used as a spot starter and reliever in 1959, but became a full-time starter in 1960 and began to blossom into a reliable starting pitcher, and was named to the AL All-Star team that season.

Monbouquette also played a little-known part in the social history of the team. In 1959, when Pumpsie Green became the first black player on the Red Sox, he saw that a coach on the Red Sox named Del Baker was giving some racial abuse to the White Sox' Minnie Minoso, who was from Cuba. Green confirms that it was Monbouquette who went over to Baker and let it be known in no uncertain terms to cut it out, and that sort of ugliness had no place on the team. Monbouquette would later say that the racial abuse was upsetting Green, who Monbo considered a friend.

Monbo went 14-11 in 1960, and 14-14 in 1961, with over 200 innings pitched both seasons and respectable ERAs both years as well. His first career highlight came in the 1961 season when he struck out 17 Washington Senators in a game on May 12, a 2-1 Red Sox win. It set a team record that would last until April of 1986, when Roger Clemens struck out 20 Seattle Mariners in a nine-inning game to set the major league record.

1962 would be an even better season for Monbo. The Red Sox were a very mediocre club, but Monbouquette took another step as a bonafide top-notch starter. He won 15 that season, with the highlight being a no-hitter he pitched against the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park on August 1, a 1-0 win over Early Wynn. (It was one of two by the Sox that season, as Earl Wilson threw one as well.) He was also named to his second All-Star team as well.

But the next season would prove to be the best season in Monbouqette's career. He reached the magic number of 20 wins for the first and only time, and made another All-Star team. He also established career highs in innings pitched ( 266.7) and strikeouts (174). But again, the Red Sox had a rather miserable team and were nowhere near a pennant race.

The next two seasons would see a decline in Monbouquette's numbers, as he went 13-14 in 1964 and 10-18 in 1965. He was still the ace and workhorse of the Red Sox staff, but the team's on-field play still didn't improve very much. Just after the 1965 season, Monbouquette was dealt to the Detroit Tigers for George Smith, George Thomas and Jackie Moore.

Monbouquette went 7-8 for Detroit in a spot starter/reliever role in 1966, and shortly into the 1967 season, he was released and picked up by the New York Yankees. They used him in a similar role, and he pitched well, going 6-5 with a 2.36 ERA in 101 innings. In 1968, he pitched for both New York and the San Francisco Giants, going 5-8 in 101 innings combined for both clubs. He was released by the Giants before the start of the 1969 season.

At 32, Monbouquette decided to retire rather than go back to the minors to try to fight his way back. He became a very successful minor league pitching coach and scout for such teams as Mets, Blue Jays, Yankees and Tigers. For over 30 years he has been a very-well respected teacher of pitchers in baseball's minor leagues.

In 1988, Monbouquette was coaching for Myrtle Beach in the Toronto organization, when he saw a tall, lanky kid from Texas who he thought had a lot of raw ability but not much "killer instinct." He taught the kid a sinker, and the pitcher credits Monbouquette with changing his career completely. That kid's name: Mike Timlin.

"I like working with the kids," Monbouquette once said to Steve Buckley, in his book, Red Sox, Where Have You Gone. "You like to think you can have an impact on their lives, their careers. It's a good feeling when you can connect with them."

Monbouquette has served as a major league pitching coach on two occasions: with the Blue Jays, and with the Mets from 1982-83. Recently he has been the pitching coach for Oneonta of the New York-Penn League, the Tigers affiliate.

Monbouquette has been married twice, and has three grown children.

He finished his Red Sox career with some very respectable numbers, winning 96 games in nine seasons with some less-than-stellar Red Sox teams. He left the Red Sox shortly before the 1967 Impossible Dream season, and it was a shame that Monbouquette never pitched in a postseason game in his career, in Boston or anywhere else, and that he never got to pitch for the Red Sox after their fortunes improved.

He was the best pitcher on the Red Sox in a bad era in Red Sox history. But at least he will always be remembered in Red Sox history, as he was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2000.

John Quinn is a writer who lives in New York City and runs the web site, "The Mighty Quinn Media Machine," and writes for the Red Sox fan site, Bornintoit.com, as "Brooklyn Sox Fan."

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #52 Ellis Kinder

Ellis Kinder, P, #16 (1948-1955)

86 W - 52 L, 91 Saves, 365 G, 89 GS, 45 CG, 557 K, 3.28 ERA

Ellis Kinder's complete biography will be posted once it is complete.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #54 Joe Dobson

Joe Dobson, SP, #15, #17 (1941-1950, 1954)

106 W - 72 L, 3.54 ERA, 90 CG, 690 K, 604 BB

Joe Dobson was born on January 20, 1917 in Durant, OK. In his childhood at the age of nine he lost 2 of his fingers on his left hand while playing with a dynamite cap.

He was signed, some would consider mysteriously, by the Indians where I he played for 2 seasons. He was then shipped off to Boston in December of 1940. During his play for Boston he went on military service leave from 1944-45. He also registered his best numbers while playing for Boston.

He switched his Sox from Red to White when Boston traded him to the White Sox in December of 1950 where he played the 1951, 52, and 53 seasons. His final winning season was 1952. He went back to Boston for his final season in 1954.

He died of cancer at 77 in Jacksonville, FL.

This 100 Greatest Red Sox biography was written by the Amazing Mander.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #56 Dave 'Boo' Ferriss

Dave Meadows 'Boo' Ferriss, SP, #33 (1945-1950)

65 W - 30 L, 3.64 ERA 144 G, 67 CG

Dave Meadows Ferriss was born December 5th in 1921. He came from a small town in the Mississippi Delta called Shaw. His childhood nickname 'Boo' came from his early inability to pronounce the word 'brother'.


Ferriss was the first baseball player ever to receive a full scholarship to Mississippi State University. He pitched there successfully on the 1941 and 1942 teams.

Dave's collegiate heroics caught the eye of the Red Sox front office and he was drafted in 1942. Obviously those were stormy times worldwide and before he had time to reach the major leagues Dave joined the armed forces to serve his country in World War Two. He served in the Army Air Forces for 26 months from 1942 to 1945 until he was discharged due to asthma.

After leaving the military Dave was sent to Sox minor league team in Louisville. After a very poor start by Boston that summer the Sox front office acted and Boo was called up. He made a stunning debut for the Sox on April 29, 1945, pitching a two-hitter. Ferriss was just 23 years old when he broke into the big leagues fresh out of the military, but for 1945 'Boo' Ferriss was the sensation of the American League. The 6'2" 208-lb rookie went 21-10 and defeated all seven opponent clubs the first time he faced them. He would then go on to set the major league record for scoreless innings to start a career, with an incredible 22 scoreless innings straight out of the gate.

Dave had plenty on his fastball but above all he was a smart pitcher.

"The main thing I learned about Ferris (sic) is contained in a remark made by an American League hitter. This hitter said: 'I know why I can't hit Ferris. He hides the ball behind his back and he uses his glove to shield the ball from the hitter. The glove screens the ball, and the hitter doesn't get a look at the ball at all, until it is almost on top of him.'" Author Bert Dunne in Play Ball! (1947)

For his rookie season Dave went a sensational 21-10. 1946 brought further glory. Supported by a powerful Red Sox lineup, he went 25-6, for a league-high .806 winning percentage, on the way to the 1946 pennant, and shut out St. Louis in World Series Game Three. Ferris started two games for the Sox in the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, winning one of them, but the Sox lost the series 4-3, Ferris getting a no-decision in the deciding game.

Ferriss would hit too. A .250 lifetime hitter, he had 19 RBI in both 1945 and 1947, and was used 41 times as a lefthanded pinch hitter.

Sadly, while Dave's star shone bright, it had a relatively short lifespan in terms of years in the majors. His record in 1947 was an average 12-11. Arm troubles and asthma restricted him to 9 games started in 31 appearances in 1948. Dave's final Game was on April 18 and with that, by 1950, his playing career was over.

Ferriss was pitching coach for the Red Sox between 1955 and 1959, before becoming head coach of the Delta State University baseball programme. Author John Grisham once tried out for a spot on Ferriss' team at Delta State University. He was cut because he could not hit a curve ball. Ferriss guided Delta State to a 639-387 record and three appearances in the NCAA Division II College World Series, before retiring in 1988. He is a member of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, the Mississippi State University Sports Hall of Fame, and the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. On November 14, 2002, he was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame.

This Top 100 Red Sox of all time profile was written by Cormac Eklof @ ''I didn't know there was baseball in Ireland?!''

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #57 Billy Goodman

Billy Goodman, UT, #10 (1947-1957)

1177 G, 1344 H, 14 HR, 464 RBI, .306 AVG, .381 OBP, .387 SLG

Long before Ryan Freel and Chone Figgins made being a utility player cool, there was Billy Goodman, a man of many positions for the Sox during the post-war era. Here’s a quick trivia question for you. Who was the last player to lead the league in batting average while playing at least 20 games at 3 different positions? Yup, Billy Goodman did it when hit .354 in 1950 while playing 45 games in the outfield, 27 games at third, and 21 games at first (as well as 5 games at second and 1 at short). Goodman played in Boston for 9 full years, played five different positions, and he played them all well. As a member of the Red Sox he played 578 games at second, 393 at first, 102 in the outfield (left and right field), 50 at third, and 1 at short.

Goodman broke into the league in 1948 as the team’s regular firstbaseman and was part of a powerful Red Sox line up that scored 907 runs and finished in second place. Goodman hit .310 with a .414 OBP as a rookie although he hit just 1 HR. It was the first of many typical seasons for the utility player. He would hit .293 or better in his first 11 years in the majors (9 of them in Boston). He had absolutely no power (19 HR in 5644 major league AB’s and his career SLG of .378 was just .002 points better than his career OBP of .376), but was always able to work the count and managed to walk more than twice as many times as he struck out.

His tenure with the Red Sox ended in 1957. The team had a regular player at every position and with no place to use Goodman he had managed just 16 AB’s by June 14th when they traded him to Baltimore as part of a 7 player deal. He played in the majors for 5 more years until the age of 36.

The year of Goodman’s batting title, 1950, was also his best season as he set career highs in HR (4), RBI (68), AVG (.354), OBP (. 427), and SLG (.455). He scored 100 runs just once and his career high in steals was 8. He hit .306 as a member of the Red Sox, 11th all-time, and his .381 OBP is good enough for 14th all-time.

Goodman died from cancer at the age of 58 in Sarasota, FL in 1984.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #64 Jimmy Piersall

Jimmy Piersall, CF, #37 (1950, 1952-1958)

931 G, 919 H, 66 HR, 366 RBI, 502 RS, 58 SB, .273 Avg, .339 OBP, .397 SLG

November 14, 1929 was the date and Waterbury, CT was the place where James Anthony Piersall, a boy who was going to grow up to be a centerfielder in the MLB, was born.

He started out as a high school basketball player at Leavenworth High School. During his time there the team went to the 1947 New England Championship. He landed 29 points in the final game.

He signed a minor league contract with the Sox in 1948 at the age of 18. He would play his first major league games 2 years later in 1950, he only played six games but during that time he was one of the youngest baseball players. He managed to earn the nickname “The Waterbury Wizard”, much to his teammate’s chagrin.

During his first years in MLB his bipolar disorder began to show itself and become prevalent, which is would do a few more times after that. Prior to a May 24th game against the Yankees he got into a brawl with Billy Martin. He also managed to get into a fight with Mickey McDermott, at that time his teammate. After all this odd behavior they sent him down to the Birmingham Barons. Not after he disciplined Vern Stephens’ 4 year old son in the Red Sox clubhouse.

During 3 week time period on the Barons he got kicked out of 4 games. His last one after firing a water gun at home plate to celebrate a teammates homerun and, after being ejected, heckling umpire Neil Strocchia from the grandstand roof. From all of this he received a 3 day suspension and 3 days later checked himself into Westboro State Hospital in Mass. He spent the rest of the baseball season in the hospital. He blamed his condition on his father for pressuring him too much about baseball.

He made his return in 1953 and got voted 9th in MVP voting for that year. The year following that he took Dom DiMaggio’s place in the outfield and stayed in the starting line-up until 1958. During this time, in 1954 and 1956 he got voted into the AL All-Star team. He also managed to clinch a Gold Glove for his outfielding in 1958. In 1956 he managed to pull a league high 40 doubles in 156 games played. He also managed to rake in 93 runs, 87 RBIs, and a .293 batting average.

He got traded to the Cleveland Indians for Vic Wertz and Gary Geiger on December 2, 1958. He, oddly enough, got stuck on the same team as Billy Martin. In 1959 the Indians battled a back and forth battle with the White Sox and in the end only ended up placing 2nd. After coming off this good season, things began to change.

Following up to his being ordered to get a psychiatric check on June 26, he heckled an umpire, threw a ball at the White Sox scoreboard, wore a little league helmet at a Tigers game, and started a few rows with the Yankees. He came back on July 23rd but got his last ejection of the season for causing problems in the outfield while Ted Williams was batting. After a meeting and a few front office changes he finally got back down to earth.

The 1961 season turned into a good one for him, he managed to earn another Gold Glove. He also managed to hold a .322 batting average, placing himself 3rd. Unfortunately, this season was also marred by his antics. He tried to go after Jim Bunning after he hit him with a pitch (more than likely on accident). He also ended up throwing a helmet, altogether costing him $200 in fines. On September 5th of that season he father passed away from a heart attack. 2 days after the funeral for his father he headed out to New York only to heckled, himself, by fans. On Sept. 10, after continued annoyance from fans, he finally punched one and attempted to kick another. After all this he still earned $2500 for good behavior.

On October 5th Piersall was sent to the Washington Senators. He didn’t spend much time there because of playing decline. He was sent to the Mets on May 23, 1963. He got sent back to a reserve role while playing for the Mets. During his Mets career he also hit his 100th homerun, which he celebrated by running around the bases backwards (in order of course).

A month after reaching 100 homeruns he got released by the Mets and then signed by the Los Angeles Angels. He retired an Angel and moved to the Angels front office on May 8th, 1967.

After his career he did a little TV commentating for the White Sox but was fired was criticizing the team just a little too much. He also wrote a book about bipolar disorder and how he handled it, Fear Strikes Out. It was also made into a movie. In the end, Piersall decided not to endorse the movie because it didn’t display the facts right. He also wrote The Truth Hurts which is about the White Sox and his leaving. He now does a radio show in Chicago and got invited to the White House for the honoring of the 2004 Red Sox Championship.

And odd little tidbit I noticed and I’d figure I’d share is that he’s the godfather of former Congressman Mark Foley.


Player biography written by Mander

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #73 Frank Sullivan

Frank Sullivan, P, #18 (1953-1960)

97 wins, 100 losses, 3.60 ERA, 959 K, 1732 IP

Frank Sullivan was a top of the line starting pitcher in the mid-1950s for some very mediocre Red Sox teams. Sullivan started his Red Sox career as a reliver in 1953. He made his debut as a starter on May 21, 1954 beating the New York Yankees 6-3 including 3 strikeouts of Mickey Mantle. Sullivan finished the 1954 season with a 15-12 record and 3.14 ERA.

He went 18-13 in 1955, tying for the league lead in wins, starts (35) and innings pitched (260). Sullivan led Red Sox staff in ERA from 1954-1957. Frank was a member of the 1955 and 1956 American League All Star teams. In the 1955 All Star game, he allowed a 12th inning game winning HR to Hall of Famer Stan Musial. He managed to win 13 or more games 5 years in a row, 1954-58. He was also fifth in the league in ERA in 1955 and 1957. Today that would earn him a $15 million per year contract!

For his career, Frank tied with Dutch Leonard in 15th place with 90 wins as a member of the Red Sox, 20th in innings pitched with 1505.3, 9th in overall strikeouts with 821. As was the case with many Red Sox pitchers, he suffered by pitching half his games at Fenway Park. Sullivan never made a postseason appearance, as was the case of many Red Sox starts of the 1950's. Sullivan was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on December 15, 1960 in exchange for P Gene Conley. Sullivan went 3-16 for one of the worst teams ever - the 1961 Phillies, who finished the season with a 47-107 record. In 1962, Sullivan returned to the AL with the Twins and retired after the 1963 season.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #77 Ike Delock

Ike Delock, P, #12 (1952-1963)

84 wins, 75 losses, 329 G, 147 GS, 4.03 ERA, 672 K, 530 BB

Ike Delock appeared in 322 games, 7th most in Red Sox history, including 142 starts (30th place, just behind Babe Ruth and Oil Can Boyd). Pitched in 1207 innings (24th place) and managed to earn 83 wins (23rd most) and 31 saves (19th best) splitting time between starting and relieving.

Delock had several above-average seasons for the Red Sox in the 1950s. He made his major league debut on September 17, 1952 in a relief appearance and loss against the St. Louis Browns. He led the AL with 11 relief wins in 1956 while tying for fourth with nine saves (then not an official statistic). Overall it was his best season, finishing 13-7 with 105 Ks in 128.3 innings. He was better coming out of the bullpen, compiling a 3.08 ERA lifetime in that role. But as his career went on, he was used less and less as a reliever. He was 8th in league with 14 wins during the 1958 season, including 13 wins in a row at one point. He also led Red Sox starters with a team low 3.38 ERA.

On May 11, 1961 Ike outdueled Whitey Ford in a 2-1 win over the Yankees. On August 11, 1962 Delock shut out the Baltimore Orioles - the third shut out in a row for the Boston Red Sox. A knee injury in 1962 limited Delock to 86 innings and a 4-5 record with a 3.75 ERA. After a slow start in 1963, the Red Sox released Delock in June and he finshed up his career in Baltimore. He appeared in 7 games for the Orioles and added 1 more win to his career total.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #78 Tom Brewer

Tom Brewer, SP, #23 (1954-1961)

W-L 91-82 241 G, 217 GS, 75 CG, 13 SHO, 4.00 ERA

Born on September 3rd, 1931, Tom Brewer couldn't have had any clue about the future that lay ahead of him, as the best pitcher in Red Sox history to wear #23 who wasn't named Luis Tiant. I was desperately hoping that September 3rd of that year would be Labor Day, in order to procure cheap laughs. This did not end up being the case.

Brewer attended Elon College in 1951, but was signed as an amateur free agent by the Sox that same season. He would make his MLB debut with the Red Sox in 1954 as (mostly) a starting pitcher. He would be a useful and capable right-handed starter throughout his career, though none of the Sox teams of his era would finish higher than 3rd place.

His '54 and '55 seasons had mixed results, but he seemed to put it all together in 1956. He won 19 games, completed 15, pitched 4 shut-outs and made the All-Star team. In addition, he batted .298. Even on a 4th place team, all of these stats would garner MVP consideration. He would finish twenty-second in the balloting. Strangely enough, only future HOF Minnie Minoso would have had any cause to complain about the validity of the results. To this day, it is unknown whether Minoso's PR firm released a statement congratulating Brewer.

His 1957-59 seasons would see similar success. He never reached any of the relatively lofty stats of '56, though he did steal two bases in 1959 against zero times caught, even as he only reached base nine times. This is a remarkable number to consider if one doesn't care about wasting time.

His 1960 season was poor, with his ERA jumping to 4.82 (against a league average of 4.03). It would be hard to attribute his downturn to only bad luck, as his BABIP in 1960 was .307, being slightly above average. He would retire after only 10 games the following season, citing intense disappointment in Ted Williams' successor as the impetus.

Allen writes about the Red Sox in a self-important and pretentious way so that you don't have to. You can find him at Over The Monster.

100 Greatest Red Sox >> #92 Dick Gernert

Dick Gernert, 1B, #3 (1952-1959)

706 G, 568 H, 101 HR, 377 RBI, .252 AVG, .352 OBP, .436 SLG, 9 SB

Richard “Dick” Edward Gernert was born in Reading on September 28, 1928 and rose through the amateur baseball ranks at Northeast Junior High, Reading High, Gregg Post American Legion. Gernert was a power hitter out of Temple University where he also lettered in basketball. He hit 19 HR as a Boston rookie and 21 as a sophomore in the only years he was a regular.

After signing with Boston (AL) and spending two full years in the minors, he began his 11-year Major League career in 1952 with the Red Sox, taking over at first base when Walt Dropo was dealt to Detroit in early June.

In 1952 as a 23-year old power-hitting rookie, Gernert made an immediate splash in Beantown. Despite hitting only .243, he slammed 19 homers (tenth best in the American League) and drove in 67 runs. He wound up leading the Red Sox in both HRs and RBIs even though he totaled just 367 at-bats. He finished 25th in voting for the 1952 American League MVP for playing in 102 Games and having 367 At Bats, 58 Runs, 89 Hits, 20 Doubles, 2 Triples, 19 Home Runs, 67 RBI, 4 Stolen Bases, 35 Walks, .243 Batting Average, .317 On-base percentage, .463 Slugging Percentage and 170 Total Bases.

The following season Gernert continued his slugging ways by smacking 21 round-trippers, which tied him with Mickey Mantle for seventh best in the American League. Once again he led the Red Sox in long balls and also boosted his batting average (.253), RBIs (71), runs scored (76) and walks (88).

Giving new meaning to the term 7th inning stretch, the Red Sox scored 17 runs in one inning against the Detroit Tigers on June 18th. The Sox sent 23 batters to the plate as the Tigers tried to stop the bleeding with three different pitchers. None of them worked. The Sox had 14 hits and six walks in the record-setting inning. Leading the charge was Dick Gernert and Gene Stephens. Stephens set a major league record with three hits in one inning, while Gernert knocked in four of the 17 runs. The Sox finished with 27 hits and 23 runs. It is too bad that only 3,626 fans showed up to see the barrage of runs. The Sox broke or tied 17 major league records that day, even though the greatest hitter in Sox history, Ted Williams was still fighting in the Korean War.

After missing most of the next two seasons (he played a total of 21 games) due to illness, Gernert made a comeback in 1956. Now splitting his time between first base and the outfield, he set a new career high with a .291 batting average while contributing 16 home runs and 68 RBIs in 306 at-bats. His home run percentage of 5.2 equaled that of his outstanding rookie season. The next year he returned to being primarily a first baseman. Though he found himself hitting cleanup behind Ted Williams on opening day, his production fell off in all major categories by year’s end. But 1958 would see Gernert’s offensive numbers rebound as he reached 20 home runs for the second time in his career while knocking in 69.

It was also a banner year for him in the field, as he led all American League first sackers in putouts (1101), assists (93) and double plays (118). Though his power stats had improved, Gernert’s batting average had hovered at .237 in both ’57 and ’58, and by 1959 he was sharing his first base duties with the left-handed hitting Vic Wertz. In 298 at-bats, Gernert hit .262 with 11 home runs and 42 RBIs. In November that year, the Sox decided to give the position to Wertz on a full time basis and traded Gernert to the Chicago Cubs. To that point in his major league career, Gernert had been a member of Boston teams that usually played better than .500 ball and resided in the middle of the AL pack.

1960 brought a change for the worse, as both the Cubs and the Tigers, to whom he was traded in August, finished well below the break-even point. Between the two clubs, he hit .267 but only had one four-base swat in 146 at-bats. In May of 1961, Gernert was dealt again, this time to Cincinnati. Though the Reds won only 93 games they captured the National League pennant. Used as a reserve for the remainder of the season, Gernert still contributed to the Reds’ march to the World Series, batting .302 in 40 games after the trade. He also got a chance to pinch hit in four of the five Series games against New York but did not get a hit as the Yanks won it, four games to one.

In 1962, Gernert was picked in the expansion draft by the Houston Colt .45s. Houston’s first year in the league would also be Gernert’s last. After appearing in just 10 games for Houston, his big league career ended that May. He finished with a lifetime .254 batting average, 103 home runs, 402 RBIs and 357 runs scored.

Gernert hung on professionally for another couple of years. He caught on with the Pacific Coast League’s Tacoma Giants for the remainder of the ’62 season and hit .289 with 20 homers and 68 RBIs. His final playing days would be spent with the Reading Red Sox in 1963 and 1964, where he hit .283 with 24 home runs and 125 RBIs in 182 games.

In 11 seasons he played in 835 Games and had 2,493 At Bats, 357 Runs, 632 Hits, 104 Doubles, 8 Triples, 103 Home Runs, 402 RBI, 10 Stolen Bases, 363 Walks, .254 Batting Average, .351 On-base percentage, .426 Slugging Percentage, 1,061 Total Bases, 10 Sacrifice Hits, 13 Sacrifice Flies and 12 Intentional Walks.


In 1969, Gernert began a brief managerial career with Wytheville of the Appalachian League, leading the Senators to a 31-35 mark. Tabbed to manage Pittsfield of the Eastern League in 1970, he was reassigned to the American Association’s Denver squad in mid-season. Denver would win the West Division with a 70-69 record, but fall to Omaha in the championship series. Gernert continued to work in baseball throughout the 70s, serving as a scout for the Reds, Senators and Rangers and a first base coach for Texas. In 1978 he was hired as director of player development for the New York Mets, holding that position for three years. He returned to Texas as a scout and national cross-checker from 1981-85 and then ended his baseball career with the Mets as an advanced scout from 1986-2000.

Player Biography by Karen